


Just Dango

by friendlyneighborhoodfairy



Series: FNF's Nonbinary Month fics 2020 [4]
Category: Bleach
Genre: F/M, Gay Rights, Other, Trans Male Character, discussion of homophobia in society, gay and bi people being transphobic, orihime being an angel, rukia needs her
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:00:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27095446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/friendlyneighborhoodfairy/pseuds/friendlyneighborhoodfairy
Summary: Rukia returns from hanging out with Ichigo and Keigo. The latter, self-invited, has pissed Rukia off royally. Orihime is perfect.{Do not copy to another site.}
Relationships: Inoue Orihime/Kuchiki Rukia
Series: FNF's Nonbinary Month fics 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1843501
Kudos: 10
Collections: Nonbinary Month 2020





	Just Dango

**Author's Note:**

> Bleach (Rukihime) + trans man.

When Rukia appeared on Orihime’s balcony, Orihime squeaked and nearly fell over the railing. Surprised, Rukia grabbed her arm.

“Sorry,” he said. “I thought you’d felt me coming.”

“I wasn’t paying attention,” Orihime said, curling her fingers into Rukia’s—and found his hand was hot.

“You hungry?” he asked, marching into the house after a kiss. (The kiss, at least, was affectionate and gentle. The marching was definitely not so.) “I’m going to cook something. Starving.”

Carefully gathering in the aired-out futon, Orihime followed a minute later.

“I thought you and Ichigo were going to get dinner?” she asked carefully.

“We were,” Rukia snorted, slamming a cupboard and throwing open another one. “Until Keigo invited himself along and decided we should go bowling.”

“What?”

“Which turned into roaming around downtown,” he continued, finally giving up on the pantry and leaning his back against it. “Pointlessly and aimlessly, with him running his mouth the whole time. He’s such an idiot.”

And the way Rukia said it, _idiot,_ like it was disgusting, told Orihime everything.

“I’m making dango,” she said, moving him out of the way and beginning to fetch things. “Cucumber-sesame sounds nice, don’t you think?”

“I—sure,” he said, blinking a little. “What do I do?”

“You are going to sit over there,” she pointed at the end of the counter, “and tell me all about it.”

Rukia wasn’t the type to stupidly ask, _all about what,_ for which Orihime was grateful. Sulking a little, he perched where indicated and itched his chest.

“This thing bugs me,” he grumbled. “I love it, but I hate it.”

“Maybe you’re just not used to it,” Orihime offered. She almost suggested he take the binder off and give himself a break, but if whatever Keigo had done had upset him regarding his gender, that might only poke his insecurities.

He wore it constantly in the human world, but Soul Society was a different matter. Orihime was pretty sure he was gearing up to wear one there, too, but was just worried what anyone outside the Kuchiki estate might say. Orihime didn’t think it mattered—people in Soul Society never said anything and never cared. But his feelings were important, and she respected them.

Kneading out a good dough, she said, “So where did you go?” and at that point, she didn’t have to ask any more questions because Rukia poured everything out.

* * *

“He just—just—” Rukia’s eyebrow twitched violently. “Why doesn’t he ever _stop?_ ”

Orihime hid her smile (she loved his facial tics, even the ones when he was angry) and kept her eyes on what she was doing.

“The idea that being gay is all about being _not_ a dick and a cunt when you have sex—is that really all we are? We’ve accepted society’s arguments against us: that we are nothing more than a sexual act. That’s the real reason why people like her can’t handle people like me.”

“Wait—which her are we talking about?”

“Keigo’s sister. The one who is majorly transphobic.”

“Right.”

“She’s a bisexual—that’s even more _invalidating_ of gay rights, if we’re really going to compare. Straight people can accuse bisexuals of being straight people who want to experiment and play around—straight people with unhealthy gay kinks or something. It’s not right, obviously, but just…

“Why does me not going by she/her pronouns mean that our relationship isn’t queer? How are you and I hurting gay rights? You like me for who I am, and I am who I am, and… I guess she thinks that if trans people are considered valid, straight people will start to think gay people are actually trans, or something like that. But I don’t think even homophobes are that stupid. Actually—I don’t think homophobes are _smart_ enough to come up with that argument.”

“Why was Keigo talking about all of this while you were there?” Orihime asked as she finished the dango, fishing down some plates.

“It’s therapeutic or cathartic or something. He wants to rant to a trans person because I’ll understand. But Ichigo would understand too! He’s not trans, but he’s not a _dick_ , so he’d be a great ear for Keigo to whine at. But no: he’s got to come to me and tell me all the horrible things his sister has ever said or done. Like that makes it _better._ Maybe better for him.”

“Not better for you,” Orihime said softly.

“Indeed.” Rukia sighed, staring down when Orihime pushed a plate of dango at him. “You’re too sweet. You really didn’t have to.”

“It’s just dango, silly.”

“It’s not just.” Rukia met her eyes with an intense look.

“I wanted to, Rukia.” She smiled. “Just like I wanted to listen to you talk about what happened. Just like I want to sit on the sofa with you and spend the evening however you like, because I’m just happy being with you.”

Rukia looked up, pain in his eyes melting into affection.

“I don’t deserve you,” he murmured.

“The lovely thing is,” she chirped, “you don’t have to.”

He grabbed her arm as she passed by, pulling her into a deep kiss.

“I’ll keep trying to,” he said when they separated, lips still close, breathing into the small space between them. Orihime’s heart was racing. “Even if sometimes I have down days and have to get it out of my system, I… I am here for you too.”

“I know.”

She kissed him again, longer, tasting dango (he’d only taken one bite so far) and grinning against his lips.

“Sofa?” she asked.

“Sofa,” he agreed.


End file.
